The Super Dupers
Members: Anna Urquhart, Heather Allison, and Brandon Wyatt
Introduction: "The Custom House"
Hawthorne may have started the book this way to provide a different point of view than what the rest of the book would bring.
Quote 1: "Cluster all these individuals, as they sometimes were, with other miscellaneous ones to diversify the group, and, for the time being, it made the Custom House a stirring scene." (Hawthorne 272)
Analysis 1: Just as in the beginning of the book, when the town gathered and waited for Hester to receive her letter, Hawthorne talks of a huge group of people waiting in the Custom House. The stirring of the people was reflected into the book when the crowd was whispering and shuffling in the middle of the controversy.
Quote 2: "This long connection of a family with one spot, as its place of birth and burial, creates a kindred between the human being and the locality. Quite independent of any charm in the scenery or moral circumstances that surround him." (Hawthorne 276-277)
Analysis 2: This quote relates to the end of the book because Hester is buried next to someone else near the chapel where she lived. Just as, in the quote above, it speaks of long term connection of family ties to a place of burial.
Quote 3: "I happened to place it on my breast. . .it seemed to me, that I experienced a sensation not all together physical, yet almost so, as of running heat, and as if the letter were not of red cloth, but red hot iron." (Hawthorne 297)
Analysis 3: The fact that the letter brought so much heat to Hawthorne when he put it to his breast foreshadows Hester's pain and misery that is brought on by her wearing the letter on her breast.
Chapter 1: "The Prison Door"
The chapters title is significant because behind the prison door Hester is protected from ridicule of the Puritan community she lives in. The prison door also symbolizes sin. The Puritan colonists were quick to build a prison because of their belief that misbehavior and evil are unavoidable, based on Adam and Eve's original sin-all people are born sinners.
Chapter 2: "The Market Place" Song and LyricsThe song above, "Does Anybody Hear Her," by Casting Crowns speaks of an outcast girl who is shunned from her friends, community, and church. No one can see the pain that she is gong through and never may know when she will hit her lowest point. This is present in the lines, "Does anybody hear her? Can anybody see? Or does anybody even knows she's going down today." The people gossip and talk about the girl just as the townspeople whisper as they wait for Hester to walk onto the platform in front of the town, and receive her scarlet letter. All the young girl wants is shelter, affection, and someone to love her. This is present in the lines, "She is yearning for shelter and affection, that she never found at home, she is searching, for a hero to ride in, to ride in and save the day, and in walks her prince charming." The song also speaks about how the church should embrace those in pain and be their support. The community cannot see past Hester's scarlet letter, just as the lines in the song say, "Can't see past her scarlet letter and we've never even met her." In a similar way this song symbolizes a view of Hester's life filled with sin, in a strict Puritan society, with no one to turn to.
Chapter 3: "The Recognition"
The most obvious interpretation of the title of this chapter is Hester's recognition of her husband, Chillingsworth standing in the crowd while her sin is being revealed to the community. Another interpretation might be Chillingsworth's first recognition of Hester's adultery, when he asks the one standing in the crowd beside him and they explain her sin. The slight recognition of Dimmesdale being the father, when he demands her to tell him the father of the child and that she should not protect his identity could also be seen in this chapter's title. She refused and he stops pushing the subject which shows that there might be a secret behind it all. The title could also mean Hester's recognition of the weight of her sin and says that Pearl will know God as her heavenly father, and will not have a earthly one.
Chapter 6: "Pearl"
The pictures above represent Pearls' nature because it shows her as good and evil, a theme in the book. The first picture shows how Pearl is such an angel to Hester and keeps her going yet the gossip and hatred from the town are "burning" the good. The second picture shows a rose that is wrapped in a vine of thorns. This shows how beautiful Pearl is to Hester and how innocent she is, but the thorns, or sin, is covering the true beauty underneath and making it less noticeable. In the third picture, stands a child with a halo and horns. The expression, "You have to have horns to hold up your halo," is true in Pearl's character. She is innocent from sin because her mother was the one that committed it but takes advantage of that in some ways by torturing her mother through always pointing out the "A" on her breast, and being wild. This makes her seem odd to the community and they shun her and her mother. Lastly, the fourth picture, also, symbolizes the two sides of Pearl, good and evil.
Chapter 7: "The Governor's Hall"
The quote,"Thou must gather thine own sunshine. I have none to give thee," describes how Hester has no ability to teach Pearl how to be a proper person and give her good upbringings. Hester has been destroyed and brought down by the town and her sin, thus she is just a sad soul continuing to live on. Pearl has to find her own way through life because her mother can't do it for her. Hester feels that she can't teach her right from wrong because that would portray her as a hypocrite. The strong feelings that Hester holds force her to not act like herself and this idea is something that doctor's use to determine clinical depression. When speaking of clinical depression, a doctor, not only asks how you feel but if you feel that you are still yourself. Those who answer, "I don't feel like myself anymore," are more than likely diagnosed with clinical depression, something that Hester shows symptoms of.
Chapter 8: "The Elf Child and the Minister"
Is Hester an unfit mother? No, Hester is not an unfit mother. She may let her child do as she wants and sometimes doesn't scorn her as much as she should but that's only because she lets Pearl have an open mind and form her own opinions about things. She teaches Pearl about God (although not as much as some people in a Puritan community may). She also is a loving and caring mother. She always spends a lot of time with her child and is more than just a mother to her child, but a best friend as well. Many of the children of the town don't want to play with Pearl because she is open minded and short tempered, so Hester is the only friend she has and they have a close relationship. Her mother passes on her wisdom to Pearl and teaches her to do better than herself, but tells Pearl that she must choose her own life for herself and hopes that she makes the right decisions.
Chapters 9-10: "The Leech," and "The Leech and His Patient" Mean Girls
The movie "Mean Girls," represents the relationship between Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale and Doctor Roger Chillingsworth because Dimmesdale's and Chillingsworth's relationship is one where which the doctor Chillingsworth is secretively trying to coax Dimmesdale to say that he was the one that Hester committed adultery with. Chillingsworth is trying to nurture and bring Dimmesdale back to good health so that he can get his revenge. Similarly, in "Mean Girls," the main character befriends the popular group, led by Regina George, in order to find out secrets to use against them.
Chapter 11: "The Interior of a Heart"
The quote, "To the untrue man, the whole universe is false-it is palpable-it shrinks to nothing within his grasp. And he himself, in so far as he shows himself in a false light, becomes a shadow, or, indeed, ceases to exist," relates to the Tiger Woods scandal that is going on right now. He committed adultery on his wife, with multiple people, and now he is regretting what he did because he has to deal with the sponsors and his bad reputation. He no longer can be seen as the same person and now is covered with the lies he told, just as the false light mentioned above. Similarly, the quote above relates to what Tiger Woods is going through because he can no longer see the world as the same. Everything may be seen as false to him and he may feel scared of every move he makes so he steps into the shadows of the public light. Tiger Woods
Chapter 13: "Another View of Hester"
When Hester first received her scarlet letter those in the community shunned her and she was gossiped about because of the sin she committed. Four years after that time, Hester bore her sin with courage and this was recognized by the community. They now she that she has been pure since the birth of Pearl and they no longer give her such a hard time and start to accept her. This video below represents Hester's journey from being an outcast to being accepted.
Chapter 18:"The Revelation of the Scarlet Letter"
The minister has changed dramatically. He finally feels like there is hope to keep living. The burden of his sin has been lifted a little and he is more happy. The whole way he and Hawthorne present himself has changed too. Hawthorne now calls him by his first name Arthur instead on Mr.Dimmesdale. The reason that he is more cheerful is because him, Hester, and Pearl are going to run away together. They can finally get away from the Puritan lifestyle and have the perfect family they always wanted. They can also get away from Chillingsworth who has an overbearing presence and need for revenge.
Final Assessments:
The reason that Hester had a daughter instead of a son was because Hester could share her personal wisdom with her daughter and teach her not to make the same mistakes as she did. It would be different if she had a boy because the son would never know what it's like to be a Puritan woman who had cheated on her husband and had a baby, which became a disgrace to the town. It would be more difficult for a son to understand raising a child in a community where she is shunned and has no one to turn to.
The character who committed the greatest sin was Chillingsworth. He was so full of greed, jealousy, and rage to a point where he lost himself. He hated Dimmesdale, Hester, and Pearl so much that he didn't care what happened to them in the end. He drained the life out of Dimmesdale,the reverend! He became the black man that Pearl talked about all the time and he happily took the position. At the end he smothers Dimmesdale with his presence, so much, that he leads him to his death from all of the stress and bottled up emotion.
By: Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Super Dupers
Members: Anna Urquhart, Heather Allison, and Brandon Wyatt
Introduction: "The Custom House"
Hawthorne may have started the book this way to provide a different point of view than what the rest of the book would bring.
Quote 1: "Cluster all these individuals, as they sometimes were, with other miscellaneous ones to diversify the group, and, for the time being, it made the Custom House a stirring scene." (Hawthorne 272)
Analysis 1: Just as in the beginning of the book, when the town gathered and waited for Hester to receive her letter, Hawthorne talks of a huge group of people waiting in the Custom House. The stirring of the people was reflected into the book when the crowd was whispering and shuffling in the middle of the controversy.
Quote 2: "This long connection of a family with one spot, as its place of birth and burial, creates a kindred between the human being and the locality. Quite independent of any charm in the scenery or moral circumstances that surround him." (Hawthorne 276-277)
Analysis 2: This quote relates to the end of the book because Hester is buried next to someone else near the chapel where she lived. Just as, in the quote above, it speaks of long term connection of family ties to a place of burial.
Quote 3: "I happened to place it on my breast. . .it seemed to me, that I experienced a sensation not all together physical, yet almost so, as of running heat, and as if the letter were not of red cloth, but red hot iron." (Hawthorne 297)
Analysis 3: The fact that the letter brought so much heat to Hawthorne when he put it to his breast foreshadows Hester's pain and misery that is brought on by her wearing the letter on her breast.
Chapter 1: "The Prison Door"
The chapters title is significant because behind the prison door Hester is protected from ridicule of the Puritan community she lives in. The prison door also symbolizes sin. The Puritan colonists were quick to build a prison because of their belief that misbehavior and evil are unavoidable, based on Adam and Eve's original sin-all people are born sinners.
Chapter 2: "The Market Place"
Song and LyricsThe song above, "Does Anybody Hear Her," by Casting Crowns speaks of an outcast girl who is shunned from her friends, community, and church. No one can see the pain that she is gong through and never may know when she will hit her lowest point. This is present in the lines, "Does anybody hear her? Can anybody see? Or does anybody even knows she's going down today." The people gossip and talk about the girl just as the townspeople whisper as they wait for Hester to walk onto the platform in front of the town, and receive her scarlet letter. All the young girl wants is shelter, affection, and someone to love her. This is present in the lines, "She is yearning for shelter and affection, that she never found at home, she is searching, for a hero to ride in, to ride in and save the day, and in walks her prince charming." The song also speaks about how the church should embrace those in pain and be their support. The community cannot see past Hester's scarlet letter, just as the lines in the song say, "Can't see past her scarlet letter and we've never even met her." In a similar way this song symbolizes a view of Hester's life filled with sin, in a strict Puritan society, with no one to turn to.
Chapter 3: "The Recognition"
The most obvious interpretation of the title of this chapter is Hester's recognition of her husband, Chillingsworth standing in the crowd while her sin is being revealed to the community. Another interpretation might be Chillingsworth's first recognition of Hester's adultery, when he asks the one standing in the crowd beside him and they explain her sin. The slight recognition of Dimmesdale being the father, when he demands her to tell him the father of the child and that she should not protect his identity could also be seen in this chapter's title. She refused and he stops pushing the subject which shows that there might be a secret behind it all. The title could also mean Hester's recognition of the weight of her sin and says that Pearl will know God as her heavenly father, and will not have a earthly one.
Chapter 6: "Pearl"
The pictures above represent Pearls' nature because it shows her as good and evil, a theme in the book. The first picture shows how Pearl is such an angel to Hester and keeps her going yet the gossip and hatred from the town are "burning" the good. The second picture shows a rose that is wrapped in a vine of thorns. This shows how beautiful Pearl is to Hester and how innocent she is, but the thorns, or sin, is covering the true beauty underneath and making it less noticeable. In the third picture, stands a child with a halo and horns. The expression, "You have to have horns to hold up your halo," is true in Pearl's character. She is innocent from sin because her mother was the one that committed it but takes advantage of that in some ways by torturing her mother through always pointing out the "A" on her breast, and being wild. This makes her seem odd to the community and they shun her and her mother. Lastly, the fourth picture, also, symbolizes the two sides of Pearl, good and evil.
Chapter 7: "The Governor's Hall"
The quote,"Thou must gather thine own sunshine. I have none to give thee," describes how Hester has no ability to teach Pearl how to be a proper person and give her good upbringings. Hester has been destroyed and brought down by the town and her sin, thus she is just a sad soul continuing to live on. Pearl has to find her own way through life because her mother can't do it for her. Hester feels that she can't teach her right from wrong because that would portray her as a hypocrite. The strong feelings that Hester holds force her to not act like herself and this idea is something that doctor's use to determine clinical depression. When speaking of clinical depression, a doctor, not only asks how you feel but if you feel that you are still yourself. Those who answer, "I don't feel like myself anymore," are more than likely diagnosed with clinical depression, something that Hester shows symptoms of.
Chapter 8: "The Elf Child and the Minister"
Is Hester an unfit mother? No, Hester is not an unfit mother. She may let her child do as she wants and sometimes doesn't scorn her as much as she should but that's only because she lets Pearl have an open mind and form her own opinions about things. She teaches Pearl about God (although not as much as some people in a Puritan community may). She also is a loving and caring mother. She always spends a lot of time with her child and is more than just a mother to her child, but a best friend as well. Many of the children of the town don't want to play with Pearl because she is open minded and short tempered, so Hester is the only friend she has and they have a close relationship. Her mother passes on her wisdom to Pearl and teaches her to do better than herself, but tells Pearl that she must choose her own life for herself and hopes that she makes the right decisions.
Chapters 9-10: "The Leech," and "The Leech and His Patient"
Mean Girls
The movie "Mean Girls," represents the relationship between Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale and Doctor Roger Chillingsworth because Dimmesdale's and Chillingsworth's relationship is one where which the doctor Chillingsworth is secretively trying to coax Dimmesdale to say that he was the one that Hester committed adultery with. Chillingsworth is trying to nurture and bring Dimmesdale back to good health so that he can get his revenge. Similarly, in "Mean Girls," the main character befriends the popular group, led by Regina George, in order to find out secrets to use against them.
Chapter 11: "The Interior of a Heart"
The quote, "To the untrue man, the whole universe is false-it is palpable-it shrinks to nothing within his grasp. And he himself, in so far as he shows himself in a false light, becomes a shadow, or, indeed, ceases to exist," relates to the Tiger Woods scandal that is going on right now. He committed adultery on his wife, with multiple people, and now he is regretting what he did because he has to deal with the sponsors and his bad reputation. He no longer can be seen as the same person and now is covered with the lies he told, just as the false light mentioned above. Similarly, the quote above relates to what Tiger Woods is going through because he can no longer see the world as the same. Everything may be seen as false to him and he may feel scared of every move he makes so he steps into the shadows of the public light.
Tiger Woods
Chapter 13: "Another View of Hester"
When Hester first received her scarlet letter those in the community shunned her and she was gossiped about because of the sin she committed. Four years after that time, Hester bore her sin with courage and this was recognized by the community. They now she that she has been pure since the birth of Pearl and they no longer give her such a hard time and start to accept her. This video below represents Hester's journey from being an outcast to being accepted.
Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.
Chapter 18:"The Revelation of the Scarlet Letter"
The minister has changed dramatically. He finally feels like there is hope to keep living. The burden of his sin has been lifted a little and he is more happy. The whole way he and Hawthorne present himself has changed too. Hawthorne now calls him by his first name Arthur instead on Mr.Dimmesdale. The reason that he is more cheerful is because him, Hester, and Pearl are going to run away together. They can finally get away from the Puritan lifestyle and have the perfect family they always wanted. They can also get away from Chillingsworth who has an overbearing presence and need for revenge.
Final Assessments:
The reason that Hester had a daughter instead of a son was because Hester could share her personal wisdom with her daughter and teach her not to make the same mistakes as she did. It would be different if she had a boy because the son would never know what it's like to be a Puritan woman who had cheated on her husband and had a baby, which became a disgrace to the town. It would be more difficult for a son to understand raising a child in a community where she is shunned and has no one to turn to.
The character who committed the greatest sin was Chillingsworth. He was so full of greed, jealousy, and rage to a point where he lost himself. He hated Dimmesdale, Hester, and Pearl so much that he didn't care what happened to them in the end. He drained the life out of Dimmesdale,the reverend! He became the black man that Pearl talked about all the time and he happily took the position. At the end he smothers Dimmesdale with his presence, so much, that he leads him to his death from all of the stress and bottled up emotion.